Liquid separators



June 4, 1968 o. v. GOUGH 3,386,581

LIQUID SEPARATORS Filed Aug. 27, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet l I nvenlor DIcKVALENTIIIE Goucn v A tlorney;

June 4, 1968 0. v. GOUGH 3,386,581

LIQUID SEPARATORS Filed Aug. 27, 1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United StatesPatent LIQUID SEPARATORS Dick Valentine Gough, 40 Solent Road, HillHead, Fareham, Hampshire, England Filed Aug. 27, 1965, Ser. No. 483,077Claims priority, application Great Britain, Sept. 3, 1964,

6 Claims. (Cl. 210--86) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The inventioninvolves a liquid separation device that is particularly, but notexclusively, applicable to vehicle fuel systems for the removal of waterfrom the fuel. The device has a lower inlet chamber and an upper outletchamber separated by a partition having a valve that can be closed by afloat body in the lower chamber as water accumulates there. When thevalve is closed, continued running of the engine creates a vacuumdepression in the upper chamber operating a warning device and, afterdraining the accumulated water in the lower chamber, the valve is openedby an externally operated reset device.

This invention relates to devices for the separation of heavier andlighter fractions from a mixture of liquids.

Such separation is often required in practice where the heavier fractionis present as an impurity. The removal, for example, of water from fueloil may be very desirable if damage is to be avoided in a fuel-injectionsystem or other metering arrangement. Similarly, it may be of importanceto remove traces of water from dry cleaning fluid to preventdeterioration of the plant through which such fluid is being circulated.

According to the invention, there is provided a liquid separator forseparating heavier and lighter fractions of a mixture of liquids,comprising a container having upper and lower chambers separated by avalved partition, said lower chamber forming a liquid entry and settlingregion and having a drain outlet for the heavier fraction, the upperchamber having an outlet for the separated lighter fraction drawnthrough the valve, a float body of the valve disposed in the lowerchamber having a density between those of the lighter and heavierfractions.

Advantageously, external bleed means are provided whereby the upper andlower chambers may be brought into communication again after closure ofthe valve since continued use of the apparatus to which the lighterfraction is drawn may result in a partial vacuum being created in theupper chamber, this tending to keep the valve closed.

Preferably, external indication means are provided to give a warningsignal when the valve closes. Such means may, for example, comprise adiaphragm actuator controlling an electrical alarm circuit and operableby a pressure drop in the upper chamber after closure of the valve.

The invention will be more particularly described with reference to theaccompanying drawings of which FIG. 1 shows one form of separatoraccording to the invention in sectional elevation and FIG. 2 shows theseparator in the fuel supply to a diesel engine.

Referring to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the separator comprises a containerhaving upper and lower sections 2, 4 which form respective chambers 6,8. The sections 2, 4 are secured to a central separating valve platehaving a frusto-conical seating 12 for an O-ring 14 of a float valvebody 16 which is laterally supported by boss 18 in the plate by a stem20 projecting through the boss.

The lower chamber 8 has an inlet connection 22 and has a relativelylarge internal volume so that it can act as a settling region for theheavier fraction of a mixture 3,386,581 Patented June 4, 1968 and ifdesired, a drain point 24 is provided at the bottom of the chamber witha manual valve 25 for removal of the collected heavier fraction fromtime to time. The lighter fraction, after passing through the valveplate 10, leaves the upper chamber 6 through outlet 26.

The float valve body 16 is denser than the lighter fraction but can befloated by the heavier fraction. As the heavier fraction collects in thelower chamber, the body therefore rises and the valve is closed beforethe heavier fraction can escape into the upper chamber. At this stage,there is an interruption in the further supply of the lighter fractionfrom the outlet of the device; continued use of the lighter fraction atits point of final delivery will now cause a pressure drop in the upperchamber drawing the valve more tightly against its seating and thispressure drop is employed to operate a warning signal.

The means for generating this signal comprise a diaphragm 28 forming atop closure of the upper chamber and normally held in an upper positionby a spring 30. On the outer face of the diaphragh an. operating rod 32is urged downwards by a slightly Weaker balancing spring 31 and carriesan electrical contact 34 that can co-operate with a fixed contact 36. Asthe pressure in the upper chamber drops, therefore, the diaphragm 28 andoperating rod 32 are drawn downwards to close the contacts 34, 36. Thecircuit, indicated purely diagrammatically, to which the contacts areconnected may be arranged to operate a visual and/or audible warningdevice 37.

It is, of course, possible to dispense with the electrical means if, saythe movement of the operating rod 32 or the float valve body 16 were tobe readily visible, i.e., by using a transparent protective cap 38; or atransparent lower section 4. However, this does not allow the remotetransmission of the signal. It is also possible to employ the movementof the valve body 16 to actuate the warning signal directly but theoperating force available could not be as great as that realisable byuse of the partial vacuum created in the outlet line.

Once closure of the valve has been indicated, the operator will removethe collected heavier fraction by opening the drain valve. The partialvacuum in the upper chamber wil remain however and this will continue tohold the valve against its seat. A bypass passage 40 between the twochambers is now openable by means of a screw 42 and once this is done,the initial flow into the upper chamber equalises the pressures and thevalve body drops from its seating. Flow through the device may then berestarted. If desired, both the drain valve and the bleed screw can beservo-operated to permit complete control of the separator from a remotepoint. a

In use, it is possible to arrange that once sutficient 0f the heavierfraction has been collected in the lower chamber, any further amount ofthat fraction in the supply to the separator can be drawn off with it.Thus, if the inlet 22 of the illustrated example were below the level ofthe heavier fraction in the lower chamber and if the line to a supplytan'k therefrom were already primed with the heavier fraction, openingof the drain valve would draw the whole of that fraction out by syphonaction provided that the outlet point of the drain were below the levelof the supply tank. In this manner, the apparatus can be used in avehicle, say, to drain. water from a fuel tank. Such an arrangement isshown in FIG. 2 of the drawings where a diesel engine 50 has itsinjector unit '52 receiving a fuel supply from a tank 54 through a separator 56 constructed in the manner detailed with reference to FIG. 1, afilter 58 and a pump 60, the outlet valve 25 of the separator beingbelow the level of base 54a of the fuel tank. In certain instances, itmay in fact be preferred to fit the separator in the fuel tank.

The separator as described above has particular application in theseparation of water from an oil fuel, e.g.,

in a diesel-powered vehicle, where the removal of such water is animportant factor in the trouble-free operation of the fuel injectionsystem; in this particular application, it will be seen that the warningsignal can be transmitted to some point such as the drivers cabin. Afurther feature of the device in dealing with fuel oil/ water mixturesis that as the depth of water increases in the lower chamber, so doesthe efliciency of separation of sediment from the fuel.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

'1. A liquid separator for separating heavy and lighter constituents ofa mixture and comprising, in combination,

a container,

upper and lower chambers within said container, an internal partitionseparating said chambers and a valve aperture in said partitionpermitting communication between the chambers,

a valve member adjacent said aperture being upwardly displaceable toclose the aperture, said lower chamber forming a liquid entry andsettling region and a drain outlet for the heavier liquid being locatedin its bottom portion while an outlet for the separated lighter fluidflowing through the valve aperture is provided in the upper chamber,

a float body being disposed in the lower chamber and having a densitybetween those of the heavier and lighter liquids whereby accumulation ofthe heavier liquids in the lower chamber will cause the float to riseand to close the valve at the partition, there being further provided anelectrical actuator comprising a pressure-sensitive member in the upperchamber and circuit closure means associated with said member and awarning device operable by said actuator, said member being displaceableby a pressure drop in the upper chamber after closure of the valve toactuate the circuit for the remote operation of the warning device, and

externally operable means being provided on the container fordisplacement after a partial vacuum has been established in the upperchamber to cause the opening of the valve against a closure forceexerted by said vacuum.

2. A separator according to claim .1 wherein the float body and thevalve aperture are concentrically arranged.

8. A separator according to claim .1 wherein the float body istransversely supported relative to the partition; a sealing ring of thevalve being mounted on the body and a seating at the partition beingarranged to cooperate with said sealing ring for closure of the valve.

4. A separator according to claim 1 wherein a liquid inlet aperture isdisposed adjacent the bottom of the lower chamber and remote from thevalve aperture.

5. A liquid separator according to claim 1 wherein a by-pass bleedpassage extends between the chambers for 4 equalization of the pressurestherein, the closure means for said passage being formed by anexternally operable closure member locatable in said passage andadjustably mounted .to the container for said displacement.

6. In a liquid supply system comprising a supply tank and conduit meansfrom said tank,

a separator for separating heavier and lighter constituents of a mixtureand comprising, in combination, a container, upper and lower chamberswithin said container, an internal partition separating said chambersand a valve aperture in said partition permitting communication betweenthe chambers, a valve member adjacent said aperture being upwardlydisplaceable to close the aperture, said lower chamber forming a liquidentry and settling region and a drain outlet for the heavier liquidbeing located in its bottom portion while an outlet for the separatedlighter liquid flowing through the valve aperture is provided in theupper chamber, a float body being disposed in the lower chamber andhaving a density between those of the heavier and lighter liquidswhereby accumulation of the heavier liquid in the lower chamber willcause the float to rise and to close the valve at the partition, therebeing further provided an electrical actuator comprising apressure-sensitive member in the upper chamber and circuit closure meansassociated with said member and a warning device operable by saidactuator, said member being displaceable by a pressure drop in the upperchamber after closure of the valve to actuate the circuit for the remoteoperation of the warning device and externally operable means beingprovided on the container for displacement after a partial vacuum hasbeen established in the upper chamber to cause the opening of the valveagainst a closure force exerted by said vacuum, said separator beingconnected to the conduit means to receive liquid from the tank, an outerend of the separator drain outlet being arranged below the level of thebottom of the supply tank.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,026,196 12/1935 Stephens 21O5332,204,998 6/1940 Ryan et al 210-436 X 2,328,027 8/1943 Muller 2l0-532 X2,499,494 3/1950 Greer 2l0-90 3,080,972 3/1963 Smith 210 FOREIGN PATENTS827,220 2/ 1960 Great Britain.

REUBEN FRIEDMAN, Primary Examiner. J. ADEE, Assistant Examiner.

